The Script of Harappa and Mohenjodaro and its Connection with Other Scripts c8.1

c8.1

The orientation of the Proto-Indian script is, in the large majority of cases, from right to left, i.e. the signs are placed successively in a horizontal row starting from the right. Evidence of this is afforded by a comparison of the sequence of the signs in texts containing two or more lines on the same face, with the sequence in single-line texts. Attention may first be directed to the single-line texts containing 𝍖 as their left-hand sign. Of these there are 177 at Mohenjodaro and 31 at Harappa (see the Plates passim, but especially V, VIII, IX, X, XI, XII, XIII.) It is clear that a large proportion of our texts - nearly one third - either begin or end in 𝍖. Now examine M. 303, 516, 391, 365. In M. 303 𝍖 being the only sign in the second line is clearly the last sign. If then we read the script from left to right we must place 𝍖 at the extreme right of the text and read 𝍙𝍚𝍛 𝍜𝍝𝍞 𝍖 which gives us the sequence 𝍟 𝍖 which is found nowhere else; whereas if we read the script from right to left and place 𝍖 at the extreme left we get 𝍖𝍙𝍚𝍛 etc. a sequence of four signs which occurs no less than five times elsewhere - M. 184; 89; 124; 9; and H. 90. - while the three signs 𝍖𝍙𝍚 occur in a dozen other texts (see Table I nos. 49-65). Treating M. 516 the same way we get 𝍖𝍠𝍡𝍢) which not only gives us 𝍖 in its common position but also the sequence 𝍠𝍞 Now it is significant that the only other occurrence of the sign 𝍠 , viz. M. 447, shows precisely this sequence. There can be little doubt then that both the lines in M. 516 are to be read from right to left (starting of course with the upper line). It is not to be inferred that the second line is always to be read from right to left. Cases of boustrophedon writing, though apparently rare, undoubtedly occur. M. 391 is a case in point. While the upper line reads from right to left the lower one reads from left to right. This reading gives us 𐀚𐀀𐀂𐀃𐀄𐀅